#STRask

How Can We Truly Love God in Heaven if We Won’t Have the Free Will to Reject Him?

Questions about whether regeneration counters total depravity in the Reformed view and how it could be that we’ll truly love God when we’re in Heaven, where we can’t reject him, if real love requires the free will to reject him.

• In the Reformed view, does regeneration counter total depravity, or is a regenerate person still totally depraved?
• If we have free will to reject God because one cannot love someone without the choice to reject, wouldn’t we then not have the ability to truly love God in Heaven? 

Is Christianity Just a Brainwashing Ritual?

Questions about whether Christianity is only a brainwashing ritual involving rejection of the outside world, affirmation within the tribe, ritualistic chanting, etc. and whether denial of a biological man’s womanhood is comparable to an atheist denying someone’s belief in Christianity.

• How do you respond to the claim that Christianity is only a brainwashing ritual, with rejection of the outside world, affirmation within the tribe, and ritualistic chanting in the form of prayer and worship music?
• Is my denial of a biological man’s womanhood comparable to an atheist’s denial of my belief in Christianity? 

How Do We Know Which Commands in the Bible Apply to Everyone?

Question about how we can know when commands and instructions given in the Bible are meant to apply to everyone and when they only apply to a specific people group at a specific time in history.

• How do we know when commands and instructions given in the Bible are meant to apply to everyone and when they only apply to a specific people group at a specific time in history?

Should We Use Preferred Pronouns When Not Sure of a Person’s Biological Sex?

Questions about using a person’s preferred pronouns when we’re not sure of their biological sex and whether we should ask why our employer is requesting we use pronouns in our email signature in case the purpose is to help people who are unfamiliar with English names know what sex we are.

• What should I do about using a person’s preferred pronouns when it’s not clear what that person’s sex actually is?
• Since including pronouns may be helpful to immigrants who aren’t familiar with English names, if requested to include pronouns in an email signature, must we always ask why? 

Is God’s Inability to Change an Imperfection?

Questions about responding to the idea that God’s inability to change is an imperfection, why God loves us, and whether evil can “claim” a child.

• If God is perfect, then he can’t change, but not being able to change is an imperfection, therefore God is not perfect. How would you respond?
• Does God love me only because I’m in his image or because of my personality and who I am?
• Can evil “claim” a child?

How Can I Get into Spiritual Conversations with People?

Questions about how to get into spiritual conversations with people and what to say to someone who says Jesus, the stories in the Bible, Heaven, etc. are all just metaphorical.

• Greg’s tactics seem to be designed to react to something someone says, but how do you get into a conversation with someone to begin with?
• What would you say to someone who says Jesus, the stories in the Bible, Heaven, etc. are all just metaphorical?

Why Didn’t God Explain the Trinity Explicitly in Scripture?

Questions about whether the Old Testament believers were regenerate, how the work of the Spirit is different in the New Testament, and why God didn’t explain the Trinity explicitly in Scripture.

• Were Old Testament believers regenerate, and how is the work of the Spirit different in the New Testament?
• I agree the Trinity best explains all the biblical data, but why didn’t God lay it out explicitly in Scripture?

How Can We Determine Which Christian Moral Principles Should Be Made into Laws?

Questions about how to determine which Christian moral principles should be made into laws and which shouldn’t and why Christ suffered a temporary punishment delivered by man while he was alive if the punishment for man’s sin is eternal and delivered by God after death.

• Is there a clear principle that can be used to determine which Christian moral principles should be made into laws and which ones should be left out of the law?
• If the punishment for man’s sin is eternal and delivered by God after death, why was the punishment Christ suffered temporary and delivered by man while he still lived?

Should We Object to People Storing Embryos Indefinitely after IVF?

Questions about how we ought to respond to the indefinite storage or death of human embryos after IVF, whether pregnant women should be able to use carpool lanes, and whether it follows that we ought to forgive Satan if we ought to forgive our enemies.

• If life begins at conception, and all life is valuable, how do we respond to those who create human embryos and then leave them to die or remain in storage indefinitely following IVF?
• Should pregnant women be able to use carpool lanes since their unborn babies are separate individuals?
• If Jesus commanded us to forgive our enemies, does it follow that we are to forgive Satan?

I Can’t Accept the Gospel Because It Would Mean My Loved One Is in Hell

Questions about how to respond to someone who refuses to accept the gospel because it would mean a loved one has likely gone to Hell, why we should think animals have souls, and how to differentiate between true Christian love and an indifference to social and political issues that are harming our communities.

• How do you respond to someone who refuses to accept the gospel because it would mean their deceased loved one has likely gone to Hell?
• Can you explain how you reached the conclusion that animals have souls?
• How can we differentiate between true Christian love and an indifference to social and political issues that are harming our communities?